She's Gone Natural Too: Update

Hello everyone, do you remember my earlier summer post mentioning my mom's decision to go natural? Check it out here. It's been around 3½ months since she big chopped (BC) and she's enjoyed every minute.

We've since learnt that it's easy to get caught up in some of the common misconceptions surrounding the desire to go natural:

❝Natural hair will be easy❞  

A twa certainly looks and feels easy but it doesn't stay low maintenance for long.
As the length comes in and the styling options increase,
hair maintence becomes a little more complex
requiring more time, effort and patience.

❝I'll have one set regime❞

In the weeks following your  natural decision you'll 

become a custom to a particular regime that your hair responds well 

to but as it grows out things might not work as well as they once did. 

Your hair will be exposed to the change in seasons
as well as your lifestyle choices
 which require some getting used to as
you go through your first year as a natural.

❝I'll have my true hair texture straight away❞

Don't get caught out by the textural changes afro hair 

can go through as it grows. It may increase in density 

and exhibit a tighter or more defined coil pattern.
This often leads to drier hair that needs to be cared for in different ways.

❝I can't do anything with my short hair❞

You can! Grow out your hair just 3" and you'll have styling options. 

Because of shrinkage my mom didn't think much was going 

on hair-wise until we tried an easy 

two strand twist style a few weeks ago:

using olive oil and water

they stayed in with ease

My mother experienced most of the issues above. First she had to deal with the hair care products she possessed. Things like; holding sprays, setting lotions and creamy leave in conditioners. Having found that they didn't give her soft, manageable hair, she has since opted for simpler ingredients such as almond oil, water and herb infused deep conditioners. She had to wait a few weeks to see positive results.

 

less of this

We then came to the issue of styling tools: At first there was little she could do with a 2" fro but lately she's felt the need to comb through and pick it out each morning and she suddenly started to experience breakage.  After getting in on YouTube's natural hair world we soon learnt from our mistakes. So it's out with the hot irons, afros picks and hair grips and in with a wide tooth comb and detangler.

more of this

She also learnt that even on short hair there is still a "root" and a "tip". Barely distinguishable when you leave the salon chair with something closer to a fade than an afro but as it grows out, even a couple of inches, it's important to comb from the ends first by hand stretching sections of hair and working towards the root.

YouTube gave us a TON of styling ideas for various hair lengths and textures. We had a lot of fun watching the magic hands of some of these brilliant women, all doing their own hair in their own homes. I'd like to share a video from my mom's favourite natural hair Youtuber - SimplYounique:

Peace
-NaturaLocs

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